I know people don't wan't people posting who werent there- and I wasn't there, but I can share my parent's reactions from what they have told me..

I was to be born exactly nine years later than John Lennon's death by the way, almost to the minute. It's a weird coincedance. Especially given that nine was such a special number for John.

Anyway yeh my parents were driving on the motorway in the fast lane, heard it on the radio and slowed right down in the shock to about 40mph- which was quite dangerous for the fast lane. I think it was my Dad that was driving. He eventually got his senses together and pulled into the nearest service station, where they remained for a few hours because they were so much in shock and trembling that they thought it would be dangerous to get back into the car. When they eventually got home, they did a small meditation for John (theyre the hippy-ish spiritual sorts!).

It gets me all teary and worked up just thinking about his death

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<br />But every so often you come across something truly inspiring...<br />

I was listening to Hawkwind(!), when my brother came in the room and said that Lennon had been murdered. I simply didn't believe him, and carried on regardless. I was in a state of disbelief and sadness when I found out for sure.

Seems like a lot of people reacted that way. I did the same thing when my cousin told me that morning. I thought she was playing a cruel joke.

I wasn't even born! I born in May 22, 1988. I remember my mother told me that she didn't believe it when she first heard it. Her brother was a big Beatles fan, he always played Beatles records, but she never really cared about them, even she kinda hate them (!) because she was a Monkees fan :. But she was really impressed about the story anyway. Everyone were shocked, it was a historic moment, one of the most important episodes of 1980.

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I don't smoke, I don't drink, I don't eat trash... I work out hard everyday and have a healthy life. And I'm proud of it.

I remember my mother telling me when she heard the news on John, she was just getting ready for work & the news came on the radio. she said shejust stood there in shock & cried. it was strange as my mum was never a Lennon fan but loved the Beatles. and then i was born 2 years later!! & became aLennon fanatic! She still can't believe i'm listening to records that she was listening to at my age! so my folks never compain about my music apart from the odd Yoko record!

I wasn't around at the time, I was about negative 10 1/2! I was born in 1991. But, both my parents have been huge Beatles fans every since they became famous, especially my mom. She was 8 when they came on the Ed Sullivan Show for the 1st time, and my dad was 7. So, I asked them where they were when they heard about the bad news, and my mom said she was at work like any other normal day. Then, it came on the radio or something, and she and her friend who worked with her just broke down. They both couldn't function all day, they just hugged each other and cried.

I think my dad just heard it on the radio in his apartment or something. He said he cried, John is and always was his favorite, he thinks the world of him. I've never seen my dad cry before, ever. But he said he did when John died.

On VH1 on tv a few months ago, there was a show on with the top 40 most shocking moments in rock 'n' roll history. John's death was #1, I guessed that it would be. They showed videos of the people giving a moment of silence, and played what was heard on the radios and stuff. I started to cry, and I wasn't even around to experience it when it really happened. Watching that show and the Imagine movie were the closest I got to experiencing it. John has had such an effect on the world, I've known who he was since I was like 3. None of us fans knew him personally, but love him and miss him so much.

Was watching NY WABC channel 7. Geraldo Rivera was the first one I heard break the news. He knew john personally--he was barely able to report this. I was in TOTAL shock. I was 27 at the time (Dec 8, 1980) so this is a vivid memory. I was in Grad school during this period. I was working on my master's thesis on Post-modern Lit, but when I heard this news my mind went numb. I asked my professors for a few days off--they granted it. Pretty much everyone I knew back then was very supportive but they didn't take it as a personal loss ...I did. People just didnt "get" that even though I didn't "know" J.L., the tragic loss of a childhood icon was very significant for me. I'm not ashamed to say, I cried off and on for a week--this was horrendous. Being from the NY area--where I first saw The Fab many years earlier (as I described in another post), just to know John was also killed here--in my native city, made it even harder to bare. I will never forgive Chapman.

I had heard the news on the radio at home (I actually still listened to radio back then) and simply could not believe it. I felt that it had to be a cruel prank of some sort. Once the reality set in I felt that a large part of me had been violently scooped out, never to be regained. The world had changed.

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'...In the name of Preverti, daughter of the mountains, whose embrace with Rani made the whole world tremble...'

Heard it on the radio, and all kinds of Beales songs and interviews were playing constantly with brief discussions of the shooting in between on just about every pop and rock station. Even over on the news oriented stations they had special programs going with snippets of Lennon interviews and songs.

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&quot;Dont take life seriously, you'll never get out of it alive&quot;

I wasn't around then born in 84 but my Dad & Uncle are huge Beatle fans they told me they had plastic Beatle wigs etc sadly they don't have them. My Dad told me he cried non stop he said he was going to a concert but when he heard John died he didn't go. My Mum says she doesn't remember

I'm from Australia, so the news broke in the middle of the day. My 2 brothers and I were being driven out of a shopping centre carpark by mum, listening to an hourly radio news bulletin. I was 13 at the time. My older brother is a huge John fan, and I will always remember his cry of shock and disbelief. A day or two later the daily rag published a front and back page wrap-around of the infamous shot of John's and Chapman's faces while John signed his album under the headline "Lennon Faces His Killer". Not a happy memory.

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I wonder should I call you but I know what you'd doYou'd say I'm putting you on But it's no joke it's doing me harm....Tell me tell me tell me come on tell me the answer

I was not yet born when John Lennon was shot, but im all day then when i first became a beatles fan i didn'tknow that John Lennon was dead,i kept on talking about him that day, i was so sad when my uncle told me that John Lennon was dead i was really sad.

It's funny how the exact moment I heard is completely frozen in time. I mean anytime someone asks me about this I immediately see myself in the little downstairs bathroom with a brush in my hand looking in the mirror ready to brush my hair with my cousin at the bathroom door telling me the news. Strange.

Lots of regulars haven't yet shared their story. I mean the ones that were around then. I wish they would.

Then the phone didn't stop ringing - apparently all my family were asking how I was Everyone knew how much I loved The Beatles - especially John.

That was the same with me when George died I was terribly upset even though I'm a fan of George any on John I wasn't born (1984) my Dad however told me he was going to a xconcert and when he learnt about John's death he didn't go as he was so upset my Mum say's she doesn't remember

I was a little over one year and asleep at the time of the murder. My dad said that as was customary at the time that he was watching Monday night football as Howard Cossell delivered the news. My Dad was a Beatles fan and was shocked.